Battle of the Ports - City Connection (シティコネクション) Show 498 - 60fps

[@Idelacio]

City connection was the first famicom game to use bank switching! The start of memory mappers on the system's cartridges, no longer were the games limited to the base hardware. ❤

[@diebesgrab]

To be fair, bank switching is something previous consoles (notably the Atari 2600) made substantial use of long before the Famicom.

[@Idelacio]

@@diebesgrab I did specifically mean on the Famicom/NES rather than all time, though I can see how it reads otherwise. I'll move a word :p

[@Larry]

I discovered City Connection's existence from it always being a main staple of Famiclones in the mid '90s. Jaleco also turned the protagonist into a male in the NES version I believe. But I’m quite surprised they kept the World Trade Center in the background of the later ports, Sega removed it from a number of their re-releases.

[@arashnikoubashman6946]

You are alive! Hope you’re doing fine man.

[@Haywood-Jablomie]

@Larry How are you doing ?

[@thefurthestmanfromhome1148]

Core claim the game had a few inspirations. They named Rainbow Islands and Rodland. With the game's plot being conceived before the team decided on a car protagonist; Robert Toon, CarVup's designer & programmer, stated that the team decided on an automotive aesthetic because "people can associate with cars and, because it has no brakes, it's easy to explain why it doesn't stop moving". Terry Lloyd, CarVup's graphic artist, said that he wanted to have cartoon visuals without making them 'too simplistic'

[@Artemis-jq7sk]

Says the one who supports KF and ED no doubt questioning that you're a transphobic turd

[@Artemis-jq7sk]

Says the one that supports Kiwis and ED

[@maurilo.rezende]

For those who, like me, had the feeling that they had already heard this music from the game somewhere, this is the main theme of Tchaikovsky's 'Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1'. YW.

[@RetroCore]

Yep, you are absolutely correct👍

[@diebesgrab]

Alternatively, you may have heard it in some version or other of Parodius.

[@rodrigomolinsky]

Thanks for showing the Mega Drive version! I didn’t know that and I’m picking it up. 😊

[@RetroCore]

No problem! Glad I could introduce you to a new version.

[@gdripresents]

Jaleco Collection Vol. 1 for PlayStation has a folder named "EMU" with the games as BIN files. The developer VR-1 Japan worked on Sonic Mega Collection for GameCube the year before, which makes you wonder why they were putting out a collection on PS1 in 2003.

[@rockmanhunter]

This is my favorite arcade game of all-time.

[@MEGAMIGA]

Also, there is CarVup on the Amiga. Although not an official port, it is basically a clone of City Connection 😁

[@RetroCore]

Nice. I wasn't aware of that one.

[@jps6704]

I like this game, it's an even way better clone in my opinion.

[@solarflare9078]

Amazing how the Famicom port kept the parallax scrolling, even if the end result is a game that looks like an MSX game in movement

[@SimianScience]

i didnt know about this game till a few years ago but this is a true classic.

[@RetroCore]

It sure is.

[@thrillington2008]

I remember being fascinated by City Connection growing up.

[@RetroArcadeGuy]

NOW YOU'VE DRIVEN ALL THE HIGHWAY!!! ✌️😋 Ayyy, you covering one of my faves! I love how the game is so simple simple yet fun and enemies are there just to bother you without getting much in the way, leaving most of your crashes on your own... Love how the UK track is a Deep Purple inspired track, hah! The difference on the NES version is it had a bit more of unnecessary story, philosophy and a blond guy teaching kids how to smoke! 😆 This game will always have a soft spot in my heart! Thanks Mark for covering it! Ps: people will never know what I originally said.

[@wedasantika6079]

There's also android port. The game itself is based on the arcade version. There are also additional new car model which is roofless and reveals Clarice and you still have option to choose the original car. There are also additional perk that warn you if there's cat, spike or ramming police car. IIRC you cannot turn around while jumping in original arcade version but you can here.

[@RetroCore]

I did not know about the Android port. Thanks for the info.

[@ViegasSilva]

The ZX Spectrum port had a 128K version, made in '88. Never published, then lost and found recently.

[@RetroCore]

Do you know how it is different from the version I showed?

[@ViegasSilva]

@@RetroCore It has an intro, music, some speech and more graphics

[@angelriverasantana7755]

One of my favorite arcade and NES games finally covered! Hell, this game is why I kinda wanna get a toy of Transformers Masterpiece Reboost, because it's a red Honda City. Also, a Genesis port?! Where has that been all my life? One of my fave games gets a port on one of my fave systems? In 2023?! Sign me up!!

[@IssanCaliRefugee]

Sleeping over at grandma's one night in '88, we picked up City Connection for NES at the video store. Stayed up past midnight. Grandma cracked up whenever I hit the cat. Good times.

[@RetroCore]

Lol, good times indeed. I wonder if kids these days have such experiences.

[@wedasantika6079]

First found and played the game when I traveled to Jakarta back in 1995 in my cousin's house from NES. The cartridge was 64-in-1. I was in kindergarten or the first grader. Later when I traveled to Jogjakarta or Surabaya in 1999, I played the arcade version. No wonder the music feels different to NES version. I was fourth grader this time. I think that's how I first knew City Connection.

[@SomeOrangeCat]

Haha! Old timey arcade games had the wildest premises!

[@flink1231]

Another nice game I've never played! Thanks for sharing! I'm quite impressed with the spectrum port.

[@RetroCore]

You and me both!

[@seamushadron]

A new awesome episode! 😄 🎉

[@ninjaalex-yf5io]

Good management of color clashing on the Spectrum! I am impressed

[@jesuszamora6949]

Anazing how this got the Exerion treatment in its day. Other than a competent ZX Spectrum port and that atrocity on the MSX, it was all Famicom ports. As such, the Famicom is the only contemporary of the arcade worth discussing. That Genesis version looks amazeballs, though. On a side note, I love how Jaleco call themselves City Connection now...

[@RetroCore]

It is funny how a company know as City Connection bough up Jaleco.

[@GamayObera]

From what I know, Jalecolle used PocketNES for emulation in their NES games. Back when FluBBa had his website active, there was a logo for it in his sidebar. And considering the compilation's release date, the version used should be V9.9 or lower.

[@Bloodreign1]

US NES port cut out Clarice, replacing her with a generic blond haired guy, smoking a cigarette. How that passed Nintendo censors, who knows, they should've just kept Clarice in.

[@RetroCore]

One of the many mysteries of the NES.

[@miketate3445]

"Cats are invulnerable to oil cans, and can not be killed by any means". That seems to be generally true. This game checks out.

[@MagisterHamid]

Mega drive version looks fantastic!

[@zubiac]

probably the first video game that uses "reflection" in car windows. sort of

[@RetroCore]

You know, you may be right.

[@kaikiske7436]

Used to love this on the NES. My buddy Jim got it with his B-day money at KayBee Toys in Westgate Mall, San Jose CA. Probably around 1987 or 88.

[@RetroCore]

Ah, they were the days. Going to a store with money you'd earned or received as a present to buy a game. I miss those days.

[@alice-pz1kf]

Me and my friend played this game together and for some reason we laughed so hard at the cat that randomly pops onscreen

[@metalcoola]

2:06 - According to that karaoke scene in Tomo-chan is a Girl anime, it's popular nursery rhyme :)

[@firisrozley5768]

Definitely one of the games from a a Famiclone game compilation (in-one) cartridge that I ever played. With that said, I would rather go for the arcade & Mega Drive ones just to relive the nostalgia.

[@MisterSouji]

Gotta love the animation on the car, even on the Famicom version.

[@RetroCore]

It's pretty good and rather cute.

[@KISSbestfan]

A cool game by its Times! Simple but addictive. Pretty much like Mappy, which is one of my favourite games for the system. But Hey I guess we have got a breakthrough. In this episode 2 emulated versions were included!

[@RetroCore]

Yeah, I was really in two minds about including the PlayStation and GBA versions.

[@JustPeasant]

Schloss Neuschwanstein (Neuschwanstein Castle) am 8:36.

[@RSP04]

Ahh yes, i remember playing the NES port on the famiclone Gamestation SP. Good times.

[@madsceptictrooper6803]

I'm not sure about the Famicom port using sprites for roads. It seems more like background tilemap animation trick that some Famicom and PC Engine did in order to have parallax scrolling.

[@RetroCore]

You are right. It was using tiles rather than sprites.

[@losalfajoresok]

At last!! one of my favorites games ever! I'm really surprised by the MD version and wish for a C64 version anytime! I really don't know why this game never had a sequel or a remake, is a really cute game that I'm sure could fit very well today

[@thefurthestmanfromhome1148]

A company called Advance Software were supposed to be doing an official C64 conversion, but they disspeared without a trace.

[@elblanco5]

Fully licensed? Mega Drive? 2023? Wild!

[@RetroCore]

Yep, 100% licensed. Fully legit.

[@pcachu]

So many versions based on the Famicom port you'd think they were trying to erase the arcade original from existence.

[@RetroCore]

It is a great shame.

[@galactoidgaming]

I love your videos!

[@RetroCore]

Thanks! Much appreciated.

[@topofbones]

Didn't know about a Megadrive release. Oh yeah, came out just a year a go 😅. But what a fantastic port!

[@RetroCore]

More like 4 months ago. It's quite new.

[@RedRanger2001]

Fact: The Honda City was known as the Honda Jazz in Europe, since Opel already using the "City" name.

[@RetroCore]

Didn't know that. I thought the Jazz was a 90s car.

[@jorgeng7251]

Great. Been hoping for this one😊

[@RetroCore]

Hope you enjoy the show.

[@shotgunl]

I don't think I've ever actually played City Connection. A place had it for rent for the NES locally back in the early 90s, but I never did rent it nor buy it nor fire it up on emulation or the everdrive. I should, since it does look like fun. That Mega Drive port in particular looks like a pretty nice recreation of the arcade.

[@RetroCore]

It's worth at least playing once for sure.

[@OlafTheBerzzzerker]

Didn't remember the famicom version to be this choppy, but I do remember the colorful graphics and the soundtrack.

[@solarflare9078]

It's choppy because it's doing true parallax scrolling. Notice how the entire background scrolls across

[@RetroCore]

A lot of games we thought looked good back in the day look worse now. Truth is thag they always looked bad but back then there wasn't much better so we never noticed.

[@federicocatelli8785]

😢 a fave of mine when I was a kid

[@chano7053]

I only played the arcade back in the mid-80's. Easily one of the best coin ops by Jaleco.

[@RetroCore]

Back in the day this would have been a favourite of mine but I never recall seeing it.

[@thefurthestmanfromhome1148]

Advance Software were supposed to be doing a Commodore C64 version and an advert was supposedly seen for it.. But they disappeared without a trace.

[@RetroCore]

I wonder if they were paid first then did a runner?

[@thefurthestmanfromhome1148]

​@@RetroCoreI would assume they might have had initial funding to begin work, then further payments based on a milestone system? But you never know with the industry..

[@ianbrooke9313]

This is a port of the spectrum but running faster

[@nekononiaow]

Great video, thanks Mark! I love that the MegDrive/Genesis developer went out of his way to get an official license instead of going the lazy route and just release a homebrew but illegal pirate version like so many homebrew devs do on the Amiga and C64 these days. The piracy mindset is so entrenched on microcomputers that they don't even think of making an official request. And I know because I participated to such discussion on the EAB/English Amiga Board where all but a couple of kittens were advocating to not even try contacting the license holders. Well, guess what? This port proves them entirely wrong. Here's to hoping the idea will at least now start seeping into their minds. One can dream!

[@martianhighminder4539]

To be fair, the farther away a 1980s game is from its point of authorship, the harder it can be to get permission. Companies failing outright with no remaining presence but their software media, or being absorbed by bigger entities and forgotten except as historical artifacts, is one hurdle. Another is a lack of developer crediting, along with people dying from old age, health issues, or accidents, and ownership rights languishing in the shuffle. It also can't be forgotten that the actual programmer isn't guaranteed to be the rights holder, so the person with the most expertise relevant to the game port doesn't get to make the call - some younger company lacky with no motivation or appreciation for a game but its fiscal value does, and I don't think that's really much better than just doing the work and begging forgiveness if a problem comes up. And of course, there were all the contemporary clones of games that mushroomed up quickly after the original came out. The Pong TV games, Space Invaders, Pac Man, and Galaga knockoffs, and so on. Homebrew developers at least have a 'fair use' defense to hide behind today, compared to the actual software market back then being a lot of clones with the edges sanded down. Sometimes because a game never got an official port on a platform, other times because a developer was banking their better/different version would be a winner while being legally distinct enough to stave off small lawsuits. Finally, piracy is preservation after enough time passes, and it could be argued that there would be no meaningful retro gaming scene today without it. Way more people can and will put a ROM image in an emulator than will ever acquire legitimate hardware and software, keeping old titles in the cultural memory, and being able to study ROM dumps against development documentation probably helped get that Mega Drive port made more than Jaleco's blessing.

[@nekononiaow]

​@@martianhighminder4539 Although those points make sense for **some** games, they do not apply to most of the recent Amiga "ports" which all have very clear ownership. Bomb Jack, Rygal, Xevious I & II and others all have very easily accessible licensing terms for anyone willing to spend more than a few hours searching for them. The existence of clones at the time is little excuse as well, especially because most of the games "ported" recently already got officially licensed ports on other platforms back then: even then they did not get cloned. And nowadays the information on license holders is much easier to find than back then. Your last point about "piracy is preservation after enough time passes" is off topic here. Those games which are ported are already ROM dumped and available in dozens if not hundreds of formats on many computers and consoles so it seems quite outlandish to claim that making a pirate port of Rygar to the A1200 is a form of preservation of a game which is already extremely well preserved and available commercially nowadays. What are we preserving them from exactly? They are already available everywhere in so many compilations and formats that the emulator excuse is fairly weak. The fact that "many people" use emulators and pirate ROMs is not an argument, it's an convenience excuse. The fact that my neighbor breaks the law is not an excuse for me to do the same. Finally you mention "Jaleco's blessing" but that was not a blessing but a full fledged contract they got and with it the right to use the original ROM content. He got off his ass and signed a full fledged contract, that's what got him forward and helped him bring the game back to life on the MegaDrive.

[@richardslotboom9250]

Nice the Netherlands (my homecountry) is also present in the game

[@PurpleSanz]

I played the famicom version as a kid and I considered it really "meh". Then I found out about the arcade version as an adult and I loved it!!! In fact, I kind of stay away from this game, because I know as soon as I hear the countdown, bam! I won't be able to stop playing for two or three hours, lol! I totally love the "gunshot" sound effect for jumping for some reason, and the different remixes for Tchaikovsky's music are amazing, especially the one from stage 2. Man, now I wanna play! There goes my whole morning.

[@mastersproutgamer9327]

I'm quite surprised that Jaleco games never made it to the Mega Drive up until they get a homebrew treatment on the machine.

[@RetroCore]

Back then Jaleco were a Nintendo only company. Even in the days of the 16 bit system. They only moved to Sega once the Saturn was released. There quite a few Jaleco games on the Saturn and a few on the Dreamcast as well.

[@mastersproutgamer9327]

@@RetroCore That's definitely true. I wonder they made a homebrew port of Rod Land and Earth Defense Force for the Mega Drive.

[@JustWasted3HoursHere]

Hey! It's Sega's "Flicky" with cars!

[@RetroCore]

This is way more fun than flick 😉👍

[@JustWasted3HoursHere]

@@RetroCoreI'll have to give it a try and see. I used to play "Flicky" at my local arcade for hours back in the day. Never saw "City Connection" in the arcade though.

[@afropowa1598]

This game is really unique since you are playing as some crazy chick villain painting roads. Now, City Connection is some gaming dev team that release decent remastered & remakes of old games.......most of those games aren't even Jaleco's either, lol.

[@videogamebookreviews]

Makes me think of Flicky. That Old Guy.

[@RetroCore]

Ah, this is way more enjoyable than flicky.

[@Mamiya645]

Did not know it had a female player character, neat. She's just out for a drive-around, no world conspiracy action thirdperson dlc-at-launch tower-climbathon.

[@pancracio3188]

One of my favorite games in arcade. This MD version is goo... :)

[@RetroCore]

Indeed 👍

[@mightyfilm]

I get the feeling a lot of new players ran right into that cat thinking it was some sort of bonus or power up or something. Really strange game design.

[@RetroCore]

I know I did at first 😅

[@philipcohen7192]

With that opening music I thought this was a California games BOTP.

[@RetroCore]

Lol, did thag one a long time ago but I can see why you thought that.

[@orderofmagnitude-TPATP]

Although i know this game; ive never actually given it a go and chance.... May well do now

[@RetroCore]

It's worth trying at least once.

[@lordraptor1994]

Call me crazy, but in the gba port the "snare" sounds like its being done with the gb sound chip instead of being a famicom sound emulation

[@RetroCore]

Quite possibly just a side effect of poor emulation.

[@apollosungod2819]

I am guessing that Jaleco probably not being as profitable during late 90s 32bit systems and early 2000s powerhouse like the GBA led to the bad decision to rely on emulators. I vaguely remember the bit of disappointment upon hearing way back that the PS1 version wasn't even close to the arcade while other contemporary devs like Irem were able to pull off full arcade conversions of their older games. Maybe too it was some bad judgment on how older arcade games could be received because iirc there was a mini retro movement that kicked off during early 90s then on (by on I mean NOT) and then kicked off again mid 90s thanks to Namco and PS1 Ridge Racer featuring logos of the older arcade games on the cars which was always a brilliant idea that Sega should have blatantly copied. The saving grace is this brand new hobbyist developed conversion on Sega MegaDrive... very good, I'm hoping to buy the official ROM Cartridge.

[@apollosungod2819]

That said and despite the limitations of the 1985 NES port, that version was quite enjoyable... maybe there was a lot more nostalgia in Japan for the FamiCom version which is weird to us... I could imagine if Sega had managed to buy a license for an MD conversion back in late 80s that it could have been a smash hit...

[@hermawanho6962]

I bet you waited to make this video after the recent release of the Mega Drive port 😜

[@RetroCore]

You're absolutely right 👍

[@spacefractal]

roads wasent used sprites, but just manipulated tiles. NES cant display that many sprites on a scanline...... Spectrum did a similar thing. Just in software. That why jercky tile road scrolling. but its still playable.

[@RetroCore]

Ah, you are right. It's tiles not sprites.

[@Sergiovsousa]

Always eerie to see the WTC in those older games. I had this game on MSX and was one of those games almost impossible to play ( like Arkanoid ) in my monochrome green monitor because that damn cat was practically insivible on some backgrounds. About the ZX Spectrum convertion, it was a unnoficial ( and a bloody good one ) gameport programmed by amateur portuguese game designers in 1988, and never released comercially. The game even was shown in portuguese TV in a weekly magazine. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGrLXnegiqeSp80

[@inklingex4433]

Man that GBA port of the Famicom game felt like multicart-quality. For the moment, I wonder if that emulation's intentional on the actual GBA hardware being it's the official Jaleco release? Around that point the Famicom Mini series did it way better for each games like Donkey Kong and Goemon.

[@RetroCore]

Jelaco were always a half arsed company so I guess in their eyes this was acceptable quality.

[@govir19]

What fun I had playing the Famicom version. The worst and funniest thing was taking the cat hahaha. I didn't know the SEGA MD version. I have a lot of love for this game. Greetings from Argentina

[@RetroCore]

Thanks for watching. I think you'll enjoy the Mega Drive version.

[@SpaceFractal-g2o]

Im guess the NES ports to the other machines was property due, they lost the source code for the arcade original? So they got silly and just port the NES version instead of the arcade (as they may still have the source code of that one). Spectrum version is actuelly pretty nice and playable. Yes its slower, but still playable.

[@amerigocosta7452]

The ZX Spectrum port is a surprise, I wonder if it's official or homebrew! GBA port is beyond belief. Would the graphics flicker like that on the original hardware as well?

[@fnjesusfreak]

Looks to me like a very good homebrew made in perhaps Portugal judging by the names?

[@ViegasSilva]

@@fnjesusfreak Yes, a freelance job back in '88 presented to Ocean, who refused due to a policy of arcade conversions being done only in-house...

[@jasejj]

​@@ViegasSilvaHow short-sighted. It's a better port than a lot of the ones they did. Shame the coders couldn't have changed it a little bit and punted it to other houses.

[@RetroCore]

Yeah, the GBA version is very poor. I guess on a small GBA screen the flickering wouldn't be as noticeable.

[@JoãoMartins-t4e]

At least Jaleco really is a fan of the Fanicom version

[@user-Performa]

wow!mega drive!

[@kenwheeler3637]

A fun game once you get the hang of the jump mechanics. Shame about the MSX one. That looks practically unplayable.

[@RetroCore]

Yeah, the MSX version wasn't much fun. Especially when the cars aren't we're you expect them to be when the screen flips.

[@ianbrooke9313]

Maybe there was an Amstrad CPC although a speccy port which is at least is playable

[@miikasuominen3845]

So this is where they copied Car-Vup from. Somehow liked it on ST, though it wasn't so excellent game...

[@RetroCore]

Yep, it's a heavily inspired game 😅

[@xtr5764]

what about CarVup on Amiga a clone better than original ? :)

[@Angellmbrr]

CHORO-Q! I remember there was a tranformers game in this style but it was crap.

[@Nathan-rb3qp]

I’m just gonna say it: I did not care for City Connection.

[@RetroCore]

It one of those games that people either love or hate.

[@Nathan-rb3qp]

@@RetroCore In terms of Jaleco games I’m more into Operation Logic Bomb and the Japanese version of The Peacekeepers.

[@doyouknowwhoyouredealingwith]

what? *says in a """""""""flood"""""""""*

[@zanegandini5350]

Wow, that Famicom music is TERRIBLE! I know it's an early release on the system, but there were games at launch that sounded much better. Then again, Jaleco was never one of the A-tier developers for the system. On the other hand, I'm impressed by how well-done the Speccy port is. It's sad that we never really got an arcade-perfect port until last year's Mega Drive release, but better late than never I suppose.

[@RetroCore]

Yeah, Jaleco have always been a lower tier company. They did have a few reasonable attempts at making A-tier games but they're far and few between.

[@zanegandini5350]

@@RetroCoreThe arcade version of this was one of their highlights for sure.

[@AfterBurnerTeirusu]

Such a weird game.